Man gets 20 years for sex assault in Manoa

A 25-year-old Windward man was sentenced yesterday to a maximum of 20 years in prison for kidnapping a woman at knifepoint in broad daylight in Manoa, forcing her to drive him around for hours, threatening to kill her and sexually assaulting her.

Shannon Kalahiki pleaded no contest March 7 to first-degree sexual assault and robbery, kidnapping and third-degree sexual assault. Deputy Prosecutor Thalia Murphy had requested an extended term to life imprisonment or for the prison terms to run back to back.

The woman had just finished work on March 8, 2005, and was getting into her car parked near the Manoa Innovation Center when Kalahiki got into her car, brandishing a knife, and threatened to kill her.

He made her drive all over Manoa Valley and terrorized her by saying he had killed someone in the past, Murphy said. "She didn't know if she was going to be next."

When it got dark, he made her drive to Manoa Elementary School, where he sexually assaulted her. After the attack, Kalahiki made her drive back to the Manoa Marketplace where he made her withdraw the last $100 from her account from an automated teller machine, Murphy said.

"He made her swear on her son's life not to scream or flee" before he fled on foot, she said.

The woman was present at yesterday's sentencing but did not give a public statement.

Defense attorney Frank Fernandez could not be reached for comment.

The attack was one of two within a week near the University of Hawaii Manoa campus that prompted students to call for more security for women at night.